A Blog about all things Star Trek, Doctor Who, Game of Thrones, Outlander and a lot more sci-fi

Sunday, August 8, 2010

Torchwood Series 4 Title and Info Revealed! Plus some News regarding the Return of James Marsters

Torchwood creator and showrunner Russell T Davies and executive producer Julie Gardner provided some fresh information regarding the upcoming series 4 of Torchwood this past Saturday (August 7).
For starters, Zap 2 It reports that the title of series 4 is Torchwood: The New World. The website is right to report that the title does give the series somewhat of a ''Pocahontas'' feel when you hear it. Not sure I like the title for now. Hope it'll grow on me or that they will change it.

Now on to more news.

Davies reveals that the new Torchwood storyline ''is something that's been ticking away in the back of my head for a long while," following the success of Torchwood: Children of Earth - which sort of took Davies by surprise.

Of the new, overarching 10-part storyline, Davies says that it :

[...] has this global sweep to it which is justified by the story. I hate to say 'international in scope' because it usually means a scene set in Berlin for no reason.

The show's creator and showrunner also confirmed that most of the series will take place in the US and abroad but that it will also return to it's Welsh roots. Executive producer Julie Gardner says that :

The Welsh setting still features in a really significant way as we move forwards so when we start filming in January, we will start filming in Wales. There will be beautiful landscapes. Gwen Cooper is still that character. She's still Welsh. Her story will take place in the U.S. but also very much in the UK, so that flavor of Wales will be very apparent.

Davies reveals that the storyline will take place right after the events of Torchwood: Children of Earth, and that it will deal with Captain Jack Harkness' (John Barrowman) state of mind after the tragic events that took place in the last series which saw the death of his lover, Ianto Jones, and Captain Jack's ultimate sacrifice of his grand-son in order to save all of Earth's children.

Torchwood: The New World will also see the return of Gwen Cooper (Eve Myles) as well as that of her husband Rhys Williams (Kay Owen) and their baby (Gwen learned she was pregnant during the events of Children of Earth). We will also see the introduction of new character Rex Matheson, a CIA agent, who as yet to be cast. Of Matheson, Davies says that:

Rex has no idea what Torchwood is and has to investigate. Torchwood has been destroyed. It's like a legend now, it's almost ceased to exist a long time ago and is spoken only of in whispers. We also have a watch analyst at the CIA called Esther. The two of them become embroiled in the Torchwood legend and investigate what Torchwood is or was and they find themselves on the run and meeting Captain Jack and Gwen, having to decide whether they're friends, whether they're enemies. It's a decision that takes a long time to be decided. That's part of the 10 episodes is the two teams coming together, a lot of sparks, a lot of excitement.

To my chagrin, however, Russell T Davies confirmed that we wont see Captain John Hart (James Marsters) when Torchwood returns, but he is keeping the door open for the character to return in future series. I had mentioned here that James Marsters was very keen on coming back to Torchwood. Let's hope it WILL happen in the near future.

As a bonus, the showrunner confirmed that since the series is on Starz - a premium cable channel that doesn't shy away from nudity or the occasional sex scene (you have to see Spartacus if you haven't yet. Not only is it a wonderful series but it contains a lot of nudity and sex) - there could be the occasional nude sex scene but only if the story demands it. In Davies' words: ''There's nothing worse than a great big global international thriller that stops for a sex scene. Get on with it please.''

Also, there is some good news for the international fans of the show: When the series will air both in the UK and the US, the scheduling will be very close on both side of the pond. All I can add to this is hooray!! There's nothing worse, in my opinion, than delays between airings of a popular series in different countries.

Torchwood: The New World will begin filming in Wales in January 2011, and the series is set to air on Starz in the summer.